Thread: Audrena order six months still no item

Has anyone had to wait more than six months for a silver bra & belt set from Audrena? I paid for it in Orlando on Oct 2 and still nothing.
She only communicates with me when I send off an email of concern.
I want my money back now.
Has anyone been successful in getting refunds from her.
Thanks,
Val

Oh Val, special orders can take anywhere from 3 months to over a year with Audrena and Dahlal both.... I hate to tell you this, but 6 months is pretty normal.

The longest I've waited is a year or thereabouts, and the shortest I've waited was 3 months. I've used both of these vendors.

On the Beauty and Costume Forum, you can find several threads about this.

Yeah, it's not the vendor's fault. It's not like Amira (whoever) are doing your individual order, they are doing a bunch of orders and that takes a long time to finish (almost a year).

If you are not pleased with the time-line it seems totally fair to request and receive a full refund. Seems odd she takes so long and Dahlah offers a delivery guarantee.

Yes, six months is not that long but I've been waiting a year for a Pharonic ensemble from Audrena; after first six months I e-mailed and called and she had lost order. I gave her specs again from my copy and six months went by with no word so I called her again in March and she confirmed order had been placed and that costume would be in "end of March."

Here it is, mid-April - no word from Audrena. I only paid a $100 deposit so it's not a huge cash outlay for me. If it isn't in by a year from reorder date, then that's beyond reasonable and my experience with other vendors is that they refund whatever I've paid at that point.

Reality is, mistakes do happen; it hasn't stopped me from ordering, but I don't order with a specific performance date in mind.

90% of the time, I'm very happy with custom orders - saves me a lot of trouble having to alter ready-made costumes to fit my 1x size and the Pharonics, Oriental Originals and Eman Zaki beaded sets are gorgeous, well-made and I got what I ordered - fit "right out of the box".

I know a dancer that ordered a custom costume over a year ago, still no costume. After 11 months Audrena told her 'I have your costume in my hand and will ship it today'. The dancer paid the outstanding balance for the costume the day she was told it would be shipped. A month later still no costume. Audrena's response, 'I had the shipment but had not opened when we spoke'. The dancer recently called and demanded a total refund. Audrena refused stating it would cause checks to bounce and she would be unable to pay her mortgage. The dancer again demanded a refund, another refusal. The dancer told Audrena her next call would be to her credit card company to have the charges reversed. Difficult situation for everyone involved.

...

Love Audrena. But it may well be time for her to sell the company. . .

{{{HUGS}}}

Originally Posted by showtime

I know a dancer that ordered a custom costume over a year ago, still no costume. After 11 months Audrena told her 'I have your costume in my hand and will ship it today'. The dancer paid the outstanding balance for the costume the day she was told it would be shipped. A month later still no costume. Audrena's response, 'I had the shipment but had not opened when we spoke'. The dancer recently called and demanded a total refund. Audrena refused stating it would cause checks to bounce and she would be unable to pay her mortgage. The dancer again demanded a refund, another refusal. The dancer told Audrena her next call would be to her credit card company to have the charges reversed. Difficult situation for everyone involved.

quite simply put...

Personal home mortgages and whether or not she can afford a repayment have nothing to do with, and are not the problem of, her customers.

mental note made not to purchase from there.

Why was she using a dancers money for her mortgage when it should be payment to Amira??? This does not seem ethical at all :(

So is there any outcome to your costume situation. I'm still waiting for mine which I ordered back in September and paid in full in February?

I paid for one in full almost 9 months ago and was promiised I would have it in 3 months Another I have a 400 balanve on from over a year ago..I called the other day and she is like I am trying for after Ramadan..I was like thats is Sept..I am sorry to say I am finally done

Yazeena, as mentioned above I also ordered in Sept. Audrena kept pulling my chain, first she is ill can't get to the post office, next she can't get in touch with Amira, and now she is in a depression because she has no money. This week she supposedly got a loan (even though i have e-mailed her asking for a refund) and now she is promising the costume to me before Ramadan as well. I am asking her for writtin confirmation from Amira that this has happened by the end of this week, if not I will take the charges to my bank. I really believe she is trying to buy time before a. we wise up, and b. before we decide to let the banks sue her on the behalf of products not recieved for items paid for.

Originally Posted by DancingLilu

I really believe she is trying to buy time before a. we wise up, and b. before we decide to let the banks sue her on the behalf of products not recieved for items paid for.

I hope the situation is corrected this week. I spoke to a dancer that told me she reported her situation to the BBB. She included copies of all emails, correspondence, log of phone calls, etc. She is unable to sue, lawyer fees are not in her price range. She lost her job this year just after her husband decided to walk out.

Originally Posted by showtime

she reported her situation to the BBB. She included copies of all emails, correspondence, log of phone calls, etc. She is unable to sue, lawyer fees are not in her price range. She lost her job this year just after her husband decided to walk out.

For dancers who want to get their money back, and have run out of patience with Audrena's excuses you do not need to take Audrena to small claims court, besides that means traveling all the way to Illinois to do it. This is how I hear you go about it: Hopefully you had paid for the product using credit card or debit card. Go to your credit card company/ your bank. Tell the company that you have not received your products that you paid for, indicate the transaction numbers. You will have a form that you will have to fill out, and it is best that you have written confirmation ie e-mails showing Audrena not being able to get the product to you. The bank or credit card company will probably take 6 months to get you the money back, but its worth it (instead of spending six more months of Audrena giving you excuses). The bank and credit card company may either write this off as a loss or they may pursue legal means, but that is their job to protect you (for all the interest/bank fees you pay). That way you don't have to hire a lawyer. I'm wondering because Audrena is doing these kinds of transactions across state lines, and moving money to purposes that was not intended, it could also be a Federal Felony as well, however I don't know how many dancers have been wronged by her to estimate if the sum is large enough to get her tried on Federal charges as well. I hope you girls get your money back.

I've been told that Audrena uses the money for costumes and deposits to live on. In addition, she has so many problems, and is forgetful, so it's better not to do business with her.

And yes, it's time for her to sell and/or close her company.

I wonder if Amira is aware of this situation with her...she does not give favorable feedback regarding her when it comes to the excuses...she has many times blamed her!
I have dealt with Audrena for many years. She was great several years ago...
But last year was the end of it for me- I waited over a year for a costume & had ordered another one in between that time. The 1st order took so long I ended up canceling it...Good thing I had the other on order with her- I just told her to put the money on that order & we were even...I finally received that one & have not bought from her since.

There is someone here that alerts her to our discussions as she has contacted me in the past regarding it...perhaps she watches or googles herself...
I do feel badly that she is unable to keep it together, she used to be a great vendor for Amira...

Does anybody have Amira's Contact info? It would be nice to go directly to her to check on the status of this costume that Audrena keeps extending the date on.

Not only that but she keeps changing her story. 4 days ago it was "I'm still trying to get funds"; yesterday it was "oh I got funds just yesterday and paid Amira (but I was so busy I didn't update you on the status till this afternoon, you know my leg and all), so you can't get your money back", today its: "I paid Amira last week." Doesn't really fit the time frame with all that she claims.

Ugh, what a frustrating headache she is.


I don't care if she or a peon of hers reads these posts. She has taken advantage of the wrong person. Until Audrena wants to make things right, she will always have very negative reviews.

Also read this thread: http://www.bhuz.com/forum/belly-danc...tom-order.html

Seriously I hope no other dancer goes through this ordeal that you guys have to deal with. There should be a sticky on these two threads so it stays on the top of the threads so dancers know not to order from this woman.

arrrgh! I swear these audrena threads just depress me. It just sucks for everyone! I think Amira should definitely be told.

Amira knows. I emailed her directly this Winter when I had been waiting a year for a costume. I finally got it. I'm not sure if my email to her was the reason or not, but I wouldn't hesitate to contact her directly if you've been waiting an unreasonably long time. Her contact information is on her web site.

http://www.pharaonixofegypt.com/Phar...gypt/index.php

I ordered a costume last August....left a $350 deposit. Audrena did not respond until I called Amira then told her I was going to Egypt. Audrena is now emailing me constantly and I'm settling with her for wings instead of a costume. Apparently she's had a rough year and, like I said in the other blog, stealing from peter to pay paul. She doesn't have enough cash flow to order costumes fast enough. I just wish she was more honest.

That is not a good enough excuse, this seems to be going on for the last several years, it is time for her to either sell the business or close it down. She is constantly stealing dancers' money, that is beyond being less than honest that is illegal.

But honestly what can anyone do about this. Do we all get together and get one lawyer to sue her, charge her for theft... any ideas girls?!

Good Question, I have no clue.

I wish i could read this thread before ordering from Audrena, shes refuses to refound my money back giving me all kinds of excuses.

If we make sure to keep posting this thread, then other people will know! I had wished the same thing too after reading posts from two years back. It's been over a year on my item. She didn't make it to Rakassah East in Early October, but I see she was able to attend some kind of LA to Ensanada Belly Dance Cruise sometime in September, so the lady doesn't seem to be that poor.

She thinks we "snipping at our own noses" for posting and warning. But hey I'd rather no one else get screwed over. I lost hard earned money that I hardly see in a year. I'm not some big time professional, I just wanted to feel like a princess! Man she's a dream crusher!

Originally Posted by xodinahox

Oh Val, special orders can take anywhere from 3 months to over a year with Audrena and Dahlal both.... I hate to tell you this, but 6 months is pretty normal.

The longest I've waited is a year or thereabouts, and the shortest I've waited was 3 months. I've used both of these vendors.

On the Beauty and Costume Forum, you can find several threads about this.

Just wanted to say I ordered a costume back in July 2010 with Dahlal, on a Pharonics bra and belt set. They warned me due to Ramadan they may be delayed and I won't get the costume till 4 months later. Well two months later they're calling telling me that they're done and how would I like to pay for the remainder of the costume! So NO costumes to not take more than 6 months or a year! Audrena is just a bad business woman that screws her clients over!

Originally Posted by arabicdancer

I wish i could read this thread before ordering from Audrena, shes refuses to refound my money back giving me all kinds of excuses.

What are her excuses now????? Her other leg hurts?? She needs to be put out of business!!!,m::

I was receiving phone calls from her promoting several items on sale. I finally got her on the line as I have a $150 credit (from Sept 2009) and asked her to ship 3 Mukesh (sp?) veils that should wipe out the balance she owed me.

That was December 2009 and I have not heard from/been able to reach her since...